Water and Ice
by Wolf to the Stars
Summary: Juvia Lockser is a shy seventeen-year-old attending Fairy Tail High. What will become of her little crush for Gray Fullbuster? Will it blossom into full love? Or will her evil father ruin her life...again?
1. Getting to Know Him

Juvia Lockser was a normal fifteen-year-old girl who went to Fairy Tail High School. She had light blue hair and deep blue eyes. She had many friends, but her main ones were Erza Scarlet, Lucy Heartfilia, and Levy McGarden.

"Juvia! Juvia!" Levy squealed. It was early morning, about ten minutes before class started, and they were all in the locker room. First class was Ms. Aquarius, a grumpy lady who had _amazing _acting skills when it came to her boyfriend. Juvia always thought Ms. Aquarius would get dumped, literally, out of a truck...or at least hoped.

Juvia turned to her three best friends. "What?"

"Lucy talked to Natsu!" she gushed. "He's so cute! They make such a cute couple!"

Lucy's cheeks flushed. "Levy!" Erza nodded. "Lucy, you have done well." Juvia loved teasing people, so she chimed in.

"Levy-chan, Juvia thinks you and Gajeel are a cute couple as well! She also thinks Erza-san and Jellal-kun make a nice match. They will get along very well!" By this time, everybody was blushing except for Juvia. Juvia always stayed away from men, since she was too shy. She only talked to Lyon Vastia, her childhood friend.

Juvia sighed. "We need to get to swim class soon, or Ms. Aquarius will get very angry." The four girls shuddered. Even Erza was afraid of her temper. The woman was very good with water. Drowning you in it, carrying you away with the waves...you should see her on vacation at the beach.

"Bye, Juvia!" her friends headed out to the changing room. Juvia opened her locker and took out her school swimsuit. She put down her backpack and got ready to leave, but suddenly somebody crashed into her. Juvia caught a glimpse of his pale silver hair.

The boy sat up, rubbing his forehead. "Oww..." then he noticed he was sitting on top of a girl.

He instantly sprang up. "Um, I'm sorry..." Juvia stood up and brushed herself off. "Juvia doesn't mind. Lyon-sama seems to have thrown you across the room." she hurried off, feeling the boy's stare on her back.

~swim class, organizing swim teams~

"Get your asses in the water now or I'll throw 'em into an erupting volcano!" Ms. Aquarius barked. Hurriedly, Juvia, Lucy, Erza, Levy, and Evergreen jumped into the water for the race. Of course, Juvia won. Erza was second, Levy was third, Lucy was fourth, and Evergreen was fifth. They needed to do ten laps, and everybody was pretty much exhausted.

Ms. Aquarius glared at Evergreen. "You, detention!" Evergreen looked surprised.

Juvia glanced at Ms. Aquarius, but she chose that moment to look her way...and assume Juvia was questioning her teaching skills.

The teacher stared at her. "You too, Lockser." She walked away, yelling at the next team to move it. "Her boyfriend broke up with her," Chelia whispered as she walked by to get into the pool. "She was text-dumped."

~Detention~

Juvia and Evergreen walked into the detention room. The teacher who was supposed to watch them never showed up, so everybody was doing what they wanted. Elfman greeted Ever and they walked somewhere. Natsu was playing with matches, Freed and Bickslow were texting, Cobra was writing hateful words on the wall with a Sharpie, and a bunch of other random kids who looked bored and mischievous. She got comfortable on a chair next to the wall and prepared to sleep, when somebody else walked into the room.

He was the boy that had smashed into Juvia that morning, when Lyon somehow threw him across the room. His deep blue eyes swept around the room, and they lit up when they landed on Juvia. She looked back at him. _He is hot._

He took a seat next to her. "So, how did you end up here? You seem like the good girl type."

Juvia didn't want to talk to him, but she felt bad leaving him there. "Juvia's swim teacher got dumped."

He laughed. "Miss Aquarius? She had that coming. Scorpio was pretty much cheating on her."

Juvia opened her eyes. "Really?" The raven-haired boy nodded. "Somebody saw him with another girl. Holding hands and everything."

Juvia was flabbergasted. "Juvia thought Scorpio-san would think Ms. Aquarius was desirable..." she busted out laughing, and the boy joined in. Everybody stared at them like they were crazy, rolling around on the floor and tears coming out of their eyes.. Finally they calmed down, and the bell rang. Detention was over. They boy stuck out his hand. "I'm Gray Fullbuster."

Juvia shook it. "Juvia Lockser." they got off the floor and left the room, along with everybody else in there. Juvia saw Kinana greet her boyfriend with a kiss on the cheek, and she mentally screamed. _Juvia doesn't understand why a beautiful and smart girl such as Kinana wound up with Cobra!_

~home, Juvia and her best friends~

Juvia brought all the snacks to her room, where her friends waited. Strawberry cheesecake, chips, soda, cupcakes, ice cream, cookies, and more stuff. Everybody dug in, but Juvia just sipped her bottle of water. "So, anyway, Natsu and Lucy teamed up for the assignment!" Levy squealed.

Lucy blushed, and Erza slapped her back. "I'm happy for you."

Juvia was quick to disagree. "Juvia is not. She thinks that Lucy-san will do all the work while Natsu-kun plays with his cat. Then both will take credit for Lucy-san's work." The atosphere got darker. Juvia could change the mood in a room easily. Then, the bell rang.

"Juvia will get it!" the blue-eyed girl rushed down the stairs and opened the door. There stood Gajeel, Natsu, Jellal, and _Gray._ Juvia slammed the door in their faces. "Hey!" Natsu yelled.

"Please open the door, Juvia," a new voice piped in. _Lyon! _She opened the door a crack, chaining it to the wall. "What do you want? Erza? Food? Homework answers?"

They nodded, but Lyon and Gray shook their heads.

"Who's it?" Lucy yelled down the stairs. Juvia shut the door quietly and locked it, ignoring the protests of the boys. "Oh, just some random people selling toys."

"Hey!" Natsu yelled. "I ain't no salesman! I'm a _dragon!_"

Juvia smirked out at him, through the window. "Keep telling yourself that, Mr. Dragneel." Then she drew her pale blue curtains.

"Do we need to?" Natsu asked.

"Should we?" Jellal got the idea.

"C'mon, Juvie, you know you hate it," Gajeel agreed. With horror, Juvia looked to her fireplace. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw she had a fire blazing there. "Um, go ahead, just so you know, your butt will be set on fire."

Suddenly, there was a loud noise from upstairs. "JUVIA! SOMEBODY'S HERE! HE CAME IN THROUGH THE WINDOW...AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH! HE'S GOING DOWN THE STAIRS! JUVIA!" Levy screamed. Gray came down the stairs and poured a half-empty bottle of water onto the fire, dousing it. "C'mon down!" The other boys landed on the wet wood, from Jellal to Natsu to Gajeel. All of them were covered in ash.

Juvia took her keys off the hook and opened the door. "Erza! Levy! Lucy! I'm leaving, so feel free to raid my house. No inappropiate actions in my bedroom."

"HEY!" the girls yelled as the high-school boys walked up the stairs. Juvia could imagine them blushing, and she left. A few steps out and somebody grabbed her arm. "Juvia!"

Juvia turned to see Gray. "Gray-sama?"

He brushed himself off. "Where you going?"

Juvia thought he was extremely adorable, being clueless. "Oh, Juvia is going for a walk. Boys climbing in through her windows, pouring out all her water, falling through her chimneys, it's too much for Juvia. She must clear her mind."

"Well, mind if I go with you?" _Of course I mind, Gray-sama! Juvia wants to clear her mind, but she will be frazzled by your pretty face!_ "Of course not, Gray-sama."

On the stroll, they talked a lot about themselves. Juvia learned Gray was an orphan that lived by himself even though he was only sixteen, and that he was a basketball star in the school. Gray learned Juvia was very shy and that she rarely saw her parents. Just during Christmas for a day or two, then they'd leave on some important journey. They were rich and important all throughout Fiore. When Juvia was being escorted home by Gray, she'd say that it felt like she was his girlfriend. Which was not true. But as Gray Fullbuster himsef would say, _Juvia and I are just friends! For now..._


	2. Competitive Moods

**Sorry for all the mistakes. Thank Yukki Ohana for this chapter.**

Juvia wanted to throw up. She never would have thought about the _male _swim team. Today, they had to combine the female and male varsity swim team for the championships with Sabertooth High. And, Gray just _had _to be on that team.

Good work, fate.

On the male team was Lyon, Gray, Jellal, Gajeel, and Loke. On the female team was Lucy, Levy, Juvia, Kinana, and Mirajane. The boys were to race and practice with the girls so Ms. Aquarius could see who was better. Lyon's partner was Kinana, Jellal's was Lucy, Gajeel's was Mirajane, Gray's was Levy, and Juvia was paired with Loke, the school's biggest playboy. And Gray didn't seem happy, to Juvia's secret delight. _Shut up Juvia!_

Loke inspected Juvia, looking like a pervert. "Wow, Juvia-chan, you look _stunning _in that swimsuit. What do you say we go on a..._walk _after school?"

Juvia was half-flattered, half-matching him up with Aries Wool. They were perfect for each other, and she opened her mouth to talk when Ms. Aquarius blew the whistle. "BRATS, GET YOUR ASSES IN THERE NOW AND I WON'T ROAST 'EM FOR LUNCH." All the kids jumped into the pools in two seconds, knowing the swim teacher meant every word. Loke and Juvia practiced together. The butterfly stroke, breast stroke, backstroke, sidestroke, and they practiced swimming quickly. There would also be a partnering competition, where some random old people from the streets would be invited to judge which school's chosen team looked better in the water, striking poses. Juvia and Loke actually became great friends after a couple of classes, and she was soon as comfortable with Loke as she was with Lyon.

~swim competition~

The Fairy team was Juvia, Gray, Loke, Mirajane, and Levy. For the team competition, Ms. Aquarius had chosen Juvia and Loke to perform. Juvia couldn't help but notice that Gray didn't seem okay with that at all. _Calm down, Juvia. Gray-sama is a friend._

Of course, Juvia and Loke did a great job. Mainly Loke. Being the pervert that he is. In the water too. The embarrassment of Juvia seemed to appease the old people, so they croaked, "Blue girl is good..." and fell off their chairs.

Sabertooth looked so mad, the opposing team was Sting and Minerva. Minerva walked right through the water to where Juvia and Loke were. "Well, congrats on your trophy! If I knew old people hated talent and liked flirty-pervertic poses, I'd totally have done that."

Sting helped Minerva out of the water, and they left. Juvia turned to Loke. "So, mister, looks like I've actually gotten used to you! Congratulations!"

Loke bowed. "Thank you, miss. Now shall we-" Lucy popped her head out. "Juvia! Let's go!"

Juvia got out of the water. "Bye, see you tomorrow." Loke winked at her. "Lookin' forward to it."

Juvia changed in the female changing room, thinking about the competition. She and Loke were chosen for the team contests, and she could not deny she was disappointed she wasn't with Gray. She changed into normal clothes: a black T-shirt, a cornflower blue knee-length skirt, and blue flats. She retrieved her backpack and walked home with her friends. Erza, Levy, and Lucy pestered her with questions. Juvia answered all of them, knowing her friends wouldn't stop until she did. She thought about Sabertooth, and how menacing that Minerva girl was. She spoke up. "Juvia thinks Minerva doesn't like her." Erza nodded. "Of course not; you beat her. Also, our schools are rivals. If she liked you, the headmaster Jiemma would expell her."

Levy looked horrified. "But he's her dad!"

Erza shrugged. "He's also heartless and cruel."

Lucy and Juvia kept quiet. They knew how cruel fathers could be: Lucy's father ignored Lucy after her mother's death, and Juvia's father barely acknowledged her. He called her a 'mistake'. Juvia never had any peace when he was at home; only her mother cared about her.

~next day~

As usual, Juvia got ready for school and arrived ten minutes early. Today she had gym first period and she met up with her friends in their gym outfits, tank tops with short shorts. Juvia wore thigh-length shorts and nervously waited for the teacher, Jet, to give instructions.

The young teacher ran around the gymnasium quickly. "Okay! We are getting into the competitive mood with Sabertooth. So, we need racers. We'll get a team of four, just in case Jiemma is planning a contest unannounced. So, we'll need two girls for gymnastics and two for sports. Who's with me?" All the guys were like "YEAH!" and the girls were like "meh."

Jet gave the girls the death stare, and most of them shrunk away. "For the girls, we'll see..." he looked at their previous grades. "Um, let's go with Mira and Erza, shall we?" He turned to the guys. "Natsu and Gray." Their mouths fell open.

"AIN'T NO WAY I'M WORKIN' WITH THIS BASTARD!" Natsu screamed. He was sent outside.

Gray didn't look happy either. He kept glancing at Juvia, and they exchanged 'wtf?' looks. Everybody watched Mira and Erza on the bars, flipping and cartwheeling and spinning. The teacher tapped his chin. "Do you two take ballet?" Mira smiled sweetly and shook her head, and Erza sat down quietly and ate cake that she somehow hid in her top.

~last period, art~

The art teacher was Mr. Jonah. Today the objective was 'paint whatever you wish. I will be hanging them up, so please try your best.' Juvia had a seat right next to Gajeel and the wall.

He was, on his canvas, trying to draw a...chimney? Juvia painted the ocean, with sparkling waves and the distant setting sun. After she was done and waited for the paint to dry, she glanced over at Gajeel's. He was coloring something with black. It looked like...

"Gajeel-kun!" Juvia hissed. "Is that Juvia's chimney?"

Gajeel nodded. "Of course it is, Juvie." He ruffled her hair. "Look, that's me! The first time I climbed in through your chimney. And that's your face." Juvia looked right and saw a woman with blue hair, looking terrified. Gajeel roared with laughter. "Thought it needed to be immortalized."

Juvia gasped and put her hand on his forehead. "Are you feeling okay? Usually your vocabulary is the size of a walnut!"

Gajeel swatted her hand away. "Knock it off! Just wanted to...get smarter." Juvia didn't miss the glance he stole at Levy and tried to conceal her giggled. "Whatever you say, Gajeel-kun."

"Shaddup Juvie!" he knocked over Natsu's canvas, and his pastel drawing fell onto the floor. He'd drawn...a _cat?_

Cobra laughed. "Oi, flame head, you drew a little wittle kitty?" Natsu almost blushed. Almost. Instead he jumped out the window. Juvia smacked her forehead. _Mr. Jonah's class is on the third floor! Juvia needs new friends who do not jump out of third-floor windows._


	3. Denial

**Gajeel and Lyon are Juvia's boy best friends. Lyon rarely shows up in this story. Might change; dunno yet. Thanks to those of you reading my note. **

Juvia blinked, twice. She was listening to the drama teacher, and this time she was going on and on about _Cinderella. _Really? The girl didn't even have a name. According to the legend, _she was always covered in cinders from the fire so her stepsisters and stepmother called her Cinderella.'_ If you asked Juvia, she thought it was dumb. Everybody liked that name, and kept calling her Cinderella'. Were the stepsisters really that dumb?

Mrs. Connell kept going on and on about what the fairy tale taught the readers. "Cinderella, in summary, is about a girl who was mistreated in the first part of her life but found her prince charming at the end. The moral is that if you endure the pain of your life, _your _happily ever after will eventually show up." Once again, Juvia thought that was stupid. Cinderella was a _fairy tale!_ This was real life. Finally the bell rang and everybody left. Juvia's heart stopped a beat when Mrs. Connell announced the homework.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, I would like you to team up with a person of the opposite gender in this class. We have 15 boys and girls, so it shouldn't be a problem. You will discuss what you think about this lovely fairy tale and compare your thoughts. We might have a little, um, _show _about this, so make sure you have something to say!"

The first thought that popped into Juvia's head was: _Gray-sama. _Immediately she blushed and shoved all her books into her bag, and hurriedly left the room.

~lunch~

Juvia sat with Levy, Lucy, Erza, Mira, and Wendy for lunch. Once again, Levy had all the gossip.

"Hey, hey, guys! Today Natsu asked Lucy to be his partner in the project!" she squealed. "And she said yes!"

Juvia sighed. "Juvia is trying her best to care, but she thinks Natsu-san is bad for Lucy-san."

Erza nodded. "He needs to be disciplined."

Wendy just ate her mashed potatoes.

Lucy groaned. "Why are you so against him?"

Levy nodded. "He's so cute!"

Juvia rolled her eyes. "Juvia doesn't like to barge into other's lives. Gajeel-kun would probably beg to differ, though." She caught Levy's little gasp. _Good luck with that, Gajeel-kun._

"Juvia, why do you think Gajeel would barge into other's lives?" Juvia could tell Levy was trying not to look too interested.

"Well, because she knows him better than any other girl. Except his mother." Juvia smiled with mischief. "Would Levy-san like to speak to Gajeel-kun personally?" Levy blushed. "N-no, I was just curious." Juvia calmed herself down. "If Levy-san says, she'll believe her..." Levy looked like she was being tortured. With that, the bell for class to begin rung. Everybody left the cafeteria, and Juvia knew her curiosity would get the better of her. Well, eventually anyway. She was sure to speak to Gajeel soon.

~after school~

"Gajeel-kun!" Juvia called to him, he was walking with his 'gang'. He looked surprised, along with the rest of the guys. Juvia thanked her lucky stars she was able to ignore Gray's intense stare.

"Juvia needs to speak with you." Under her breath so only Gajeel could hear her, she added, "about Levy-san." she saw something flash across his face before he masked it with annoyance. "Whatever, Juvie. Make sure it doesn't take long." He grabbed her wrist roughly and dragged her away.

"What do you need to tell me?" he asked, trying not to sound interested. Juvia tried to keep a smirk off her face. "Um, Juvia thinks that you like Levy-san, correct?"

"Whaddya talkin' 'bout? That's all shit!"

"Juvia doesn't fall for your lies. We have known each other for years now, and she thinks you need to be honest with her."

Gajeel scratched his head and looked away. "I dunno what yer talkin' 'bout."

Juvia began to walk away. "Fine; then I will tell Levy-san she has no barriers to keep her from going on that date~" Gajeel pulled her back. "What date?"

Juvia pointed a finger at him accusingly. "Aha! She knew you liked Levy-san!"

Gajeel still wouldn't admit it. "Who she goin' with?"

Juvia crossed her arms, suddenly aware lots of people were watching, including Gray. Quietly she said, "there is no date, but Juvia will tell Levy-san that you," she jabbed a finger in his chest, "are not interested." she smiled a sickly sweet smile and caught up with Lucy and Erza.

~Gajeel's pov~

_Damn it, damn it, damn it. Juvie can't do that! I need to tell her not to, but then she'll notice I like that shrimp...UGH! _Gajeel stalked off, and Natsu and the others caught up to him. "What did she say?" asked Gray.

"Nothin'." he stared ahead grumpily, trying to think of a way to fix this.

~Gray's pov~

_What did Juvia say? Gajeel seems pretty close to her, and he seems angry. Did she break up with him or something? Are they dating? What did she say? Why won't he tell me? Ugh! I need to talk to Juvia privately. Somehow..._


	4. Juvia's Parents

**I'll be making a (^ o ^) face 4 fun from now on. K? If the face is like (^o^)~hi, then it's talking. It'll be fun. Just accept it. On with the story!**

~twenty minutes after school dismissed~

Juvia was in her room when suddenly her text tone rang up. She checked her phone:

New message from: ~**Mom~**

Juvia opened the text and was half-scared, half-surprised at the message she had been sent.

_Sweetie, your father and I are coming home! We'll arrive maybe on Sunday, Tuesday at the latest. Papa will only have two days to spare, but I'll probably be available until the 23rd. See you soon!_

Juvia put her phone away. _Until the twenty-third?_ She checked the calendar in her room. It was Thursday the seventh, so she had two full days before Sunday. And her mother was going to be able to stay until the twenty-third! That was at least 11 full days! She couldn't live like that. And two days in the same house as Mr. Lockser? Yeah, nightmare. Juvia loved her mom, but she'd invite Lyon and Gajeel over. A lot. And they'd jump at the chance to embarrass Juvia over and over again, like before. They might even introduce her mom to _Gray!_ Juvia grabbed one of her many pillows laying on the floor and smacked herself. _I need to warn Lucy and Levy. Erza will make a great impression on papa._

She dialed Levy's number, and she picked up fast. "Hello?"

"Levy, my parents are coming home," said Juvia. When she spoke in first person, her best friends knew she was dead serious.

"What? Your mom _and _dad?" Levy sounded shocked.

"Yes. They'll come on Sunday or Tuesday at the latest. My dad will stay for two days, and my mom stays eleven."

"Didn't you say your dad was mean and your mom is embarrassing?"

"Obviously! My dad is evil, so you and Lucy need to shape up and act like Erza."

"Why? That's impossible!"

"Possible. Just act all proper and ladylike, and cursing will bring you a slap across the face and a call home."

"Strict, huh. So coming to your house is a no-no?"

"Yes. Now tell Lucy, and warn Erza about my parents."

"Got it! Meanwhile you clean the whole house, right?"

"You know me so well, so..."

"Yeah, yeah. We'll help. I'll alert the others. Lucy will let Natsu know and the boys will be alert too."

"Yeah, Lyon and Gajeel love to embarrass me as much as my mom. Bye."

"Bye, Juvia! Good luck, and I hope we live through this."

"Good-bye, Levy-san." Juvia hung up and sighed. "Juvia needs a fairy godmother, like Cinderella."

(^ o ^ )~meanwhile, Natsu has gotten the message and is telling the 'gang'. **No pov with this, k?**

"Hey, guys!" Natsu got the attention of the guys.

"What, flame brain?" asked Gray.

"Well, stripper, Lucy says Juvia's parents are coming home."

A smirk curved onto Gajeel and Lyon's faces. "Her mom?"

"And dad."

The smirks fell. "It was a warning," Lyon explained to everybody. "Juvia's dad is super strict. If you curse, he'll beat you up, and he expects us to talk perfectly. No abbreviations, and manners." He plopped back down on the couch. "Hellhole for Juvia."

Gajeel went back to scrolling around on the internet, while Gray wondered. "Hey, pink-head, when are her parents arriving?"

"I'll ask Lucy." after a few minutes, he said, "Lucy says that her parents will arrive on Sunday, or Tuesday, and her dad will leave after a few days. Her mom stays until the 23rd."

Lyon and Gajeel smirked again. "Well, maybe we can talk to her mom after all."

"Embarrass her so much," Gajeel couldn't wait. No pesky father, just annoying mother. Juvia would never be able to face her mom again. Then he remembered her words: _Juvia will tell Levy-san that you are not interested. _Did she tell yet? What did Levy say? Would she still like him? If Levy cared if Gajeel liked her, clearly she liked him. He just kept staring at his phone as if that would fix all the problems, and he told himself it would so much times, he probably believed it. Of course, he knew, that Juvia would save him. Again. Times forty-three.

~Gray's pov~

_Huh, evil. I hope Juvia lives through it...and I'd better visit her house after I dress up. _But then he thought better of it. "Hey, guys," he said loudly. All the attention went to him. He cleared his throat.

"Uh, if her dad leaves after a few days, then shouldn't we visit her after he leaves? Then nobody would have to speak to him."

"Wow," Natsu muttered, shaking his head. "You are lucky you are new or I'd beat the living shit outta you."

Lyon nodded. "We can't leave Juvia with her dad for two full days! If we did, what kind of friends would we be?"

Jellal spoke up. "What about her father's perspective? He wouldn't want his 'disgusting excuse for a proper daughter' to be hanging out with boys. We all know the story."

"What story?" Gray wished he hadn't only moved there recently.

Gajeel decided to tell him. "Well, Juvie says her father is only 35 years old. And she is seventeen."

Gray counted on his fingers. "Eighteen years apart."

Lyon nodded, a grim look on his face. "You can probably guess why he called her a mistake now."

Gray knew. Juvia's father had gotten her mother pregnant when he was only eighteen! And Juvia's arrival was clearly unannounced. So he disliked and hated her.

Gray smacked himself in the head. Why was he so stupid? She would be miserable in her home, and he cleared his throat. "Back to what Jellal said. What about her dad? He wouldn't want boys with his daughter."

"That's a problem," Natsu admitted.

Jellal sighed. "Then just text Lucy to make her go there more often." He smiled at Gray. "Afterwards, you can meet her mom. She's really nice, but she loves to embarrass Juvia."

Gajeel smirked. "When I told her about the first time we went down the chimney-"

"-Juvia's face turned so red she looked like a tomato!" Lyon finished. You know the feeling when everybody is laughing at an inside joke and you're just sitting there like 'what is so funny?' and when they tell you, you don't get it because you weren't there?

That's how Gray felt, listening to his friends talking about Mrs. Lockser. He decided to just go with the flow...

and ask Gajeel for Juvia's number.

**That's it for now. Make sure to review, because I love reading them. If you actually take the time for that, do you think I should have the OC like Juvia? Or should I just take that out and replace it with Natsu? Also if I don't get ideas the next chapter will be short and bad. **

**#justsayin**

**LOL, goodbye!**


	5. Gajeel's Laziness

**Hi, ppl. See here, I rly dunno where this story is going...like what happens after gray gets juvia's number? Will she call him like a stalker? Will juvia be sad he didnt ask her personally? I dont rly know, so plz help me in the reviews and let me improve this story. Do u like long/short chapters? Do u think someone needs to be pushed against a tree or wall, lemme know thx. SO for now, on with chapter 5!**

**Also, this chapter is written using the advice of FlyingDoll4, mgaa, and moonlightclock. Enjoy!**

Juvia turned off her alarm clock and checked the calendar. It was Friday, the eighth. She didn't really like spending her Fridays worried about random things, but she couldn't get the subject out of her head, so she just asked her friends about it. She checked the time: it was 7:04am. There was 56 full minutes before the first bell rang, and about 46 before Gajeel picked her up. He always said it was a coinicidence, but Juvia knew better. She quickly took a shower, dried her hair, got dressed, gathered her things, and ran out the door: it was 7:47. She wanted to see if Gajeel would really come by after what she told him on Wednesday. She took a bite out of her egg sandwhich: she didn't really have time to make something fancy. Surprisingly, Gajeel showed up. He walked with her in silence until he spoke up: "So, Juvie, who does Levy like?" Juvia raised an eyebrow. He quickly said, "I'm asking out of curiosity."

Juvia held back her giggle. "So, what about Lucy?"

"It's Natsu."

"Erza?"

"Probably Jellal."

_Well played, iron head, _she thought. Out loud, she said, "Juvia knows you like Levy-san BUT!" sHe said that loudly so Gajeel wouldn't interupt. "She didn't say you weren't interested in her. She doesn't want to mess things up."

Gajeel said nothing, just ruffled her hair. He looked away, but Juvia knew he might be blushing. She just took this as a sign of thanks. She left it like that, until Gajeel said, "Fullbuster asked for your number."

Juvia stopped, and Gajeel looked back at her as he stopped too. " gave it to him."

Juvia felt her heart drop down to her feet. "You messed with my life?" Gajeel started panicking, as he heard something strange in her speech.

"Um, now now Juvia, don't want to be violent," Gajeel tried to say. Juvia ignored him completely and raised her fist.

_BAM!_

~lunch~

"I didn't see Gajeel today," Lyon told Juvia. "You know where he is?"

Juvia shook her head. "She doesn't."

"Juvia..." Lyon said sternly. He knew she was lying. She still refused to spill.

"Oh well." Lyon ran his fingers through his hair. "I'll wait until after sch-" Cobra slapped his back out of nowhere.

"C'mon, man, way to live on the edge," he said sarcastically. "If you're worried about that iron bastard, just ditch! Then you can visit him now instead of later."

"Good point," Lyon nodded. Juvia groaned and walked away. "Juvia leaves you two gentlemen to it."

She decided to skip lunch and go to the library. She still had, like, thirty minutes before the bel rang anyways. So she went to the library, grabbed Beauty and the Beast, and got comfortable on a couch.

~after the book~

Juvia shut the book. She never knew about the _original _story; she just watched the Disney movie. Turned out that 'Belle' was actually named 'Beauty'. Also, her father used to be a rich sea merchant before he lost all his ships and stuff. She also had two jealous older sisters. Basically, she lived with the beast and when she visited her father, her sisters got jealous of her beautiful clothes. They begged her to stay longer, hoping the beast would get angry and eat her. Beauty dreamed about the beast dying, rushed back to him, and told him she'd marry him. He turned into a prince, happily ever after, and all that stuff. Wasn't there a single fairy tale without a happy ending?

"Hi," said a voice from behind her. Juvia jumped, and saw it was Gray. She quickly fixed her hair. "Yes?"

~gray's pov~

Levy oh-so-conviently happened to 'let it slip' to Gray Juvia's location, and there she was: in the library.

"Uh, I heard about you parents...and they're coming?" Gray knew he sounded like an idiot.

"Yes, my parents are arriving maybe tomorrow." _First person?_ Gray thought, but he mentally shrugged it off.

"So..." he felt like he should change the subject. "Where's Gajeel?"

Juvia shrugged, smiling. "Juvia does not know."

"Are you sure? Your smile is giving you away," Gray teased. He was glad it wasn't as awkward.

"Um, Juvia actually-"

_RING! RING! RING!_

Juvia jumped, put back the book she was reading, and bowed. "Juvia needs to get to class." she slung her bag over her shoulder and power walked away. Gray ran his fingers through his hair. "Way to be smooth," he muttered to himself. Then he picked up his bag and walked out of the library as well.

~after school, Juvia's pov~

Juvia quickly gathered her things and sad goodbye to her friends.

"Juvia!" Lucy called after her. Juvia sighed and called back, "Juvia's in a hurry; she'll walk home alone!" Then she ran...no, not to her home, but to the supermarket to buy stakes. She knew Gajeel could finish three by himself in five minutes. She stopped by the pet shop to buy Pantherlily a chew toy: a mouse. She knew Pantherlily was as violent as Gajeel and loved to bite things; it was just that Gajeel was too cheap to buy any toys for him. She rang Gajeel's doorbell.

"What do you want?" a tiny voice croaked.

"It's Juvia," she said.

"Go away," he said a little louder.

"She is here to visit," she said. The door opened quickly. Gajeel knew by now when Juvia came to visit, she always brought good stuff. If she just happened to stop by, there was a good chance Gajeel would say something stupid and get beaten up. Again.

She set down the stakes on the table and looked around Gajeel's dirty home. "Do you need some help cleaning your entire house?"

Gajeel nodded. He was on the couch, with bruises everywhere. It had been a good six hours since he was flipped onto the hard pavement, but he was still bruised. Juvia mentally praised herself for being a good thrower.

"Well, hoped you learned your lesson," Juvia said as she took out Gajeel's fantastic, completely unused spices. He left them there for Juvia to use. She threw the toy on the ground for Lily when he noticed it. Juvia quickly preheated the oven first.

"I did," Gajeel turned on the TV and watched all the random stuff. He liked to channel surf, but he never found a single one he liked. He was too lazy to turn on the computer and type.

"I need to move my fingers a _lot,_" he complained to Juvia one time.

After twenty minutes, she carefully took the ginger-glazed salmon steak out of the oven. She put the side of sweet potatoes on his giant dishes and set it in front of him. Lily came out, mewing for food. Juvia put pork chops in his dish, snce he usually got normal cat food. When Juvia visited, it was a treat for Lily. Sometimes, two or three.

"Feed me," Gajeel groaned. "I'm weak and hurt."

"Juvia will call Levy-san to help feed-"

"I'll eat myself." Gajeel sat up and stabbed his stake. Juvia brushed herself off and went into his room, ready to stab random stuff with the spikes on his walls and floor.

**please review! thanks.**


	6. Making Progress (Not Really)

**People, seriously, I need reviews. I'm running out of ideas.**

After Juvia got home from Gajeel's, she took another shower and finished her homework. Then she went right back to cleaning. Levy and Lucy had helped her with the first floor, and now she needed to clean upstairs. After a few hours, all that was left was her bedroom.

She looked in her room, and again, didn't see anything wrong. She had dark aqua blue wallpaper will frilly white stripes, across her walls and the ceiling had a white flower. Her bedroom floor was completely covered by a soft blue rug that was always clean, since Juvia didn't allow shoes in her room.

Besides her closet.

Now here was the 'problem', as her father said. As he had said himself:

"There are pillows all over your floor, your makeup table is covered in all sorts of things, that were _very _expensive to commoners, mind you, while your drawers are not organized. One drawer for mascara, another for nail polish, how many times have I told you? And keep your plain papers off the mirror! There are real sapphires in the rim, Juvia. Your desk...well, I suppose your desk is fine. Keeping the books in piles were not necessary, though, you have drawers for a reason. Make your bed every time you get out of it!" and so on.

Juvia liked the post-its on her mirror. She used them to remind herself of things. Juvia only used the makeup for her father's business parties. The rich and _kind _people always invited Mr. Lockser's wonderful daughter to party with them. Mr. Lockser, of course, could not object, however much he wanted to. The piles on her desk were all art books, with biographies on artists and her own neatly drawn sketches of birds in trees. Plus, making her bed wasn't necessary. Her friends didn't care, and neither did Juvia. It wasn't like it made her life easier anyway. She _liked _all the pillows on the floor. They were either pale blue or gray, and normal rectangles or frilly hearts. Once in a while Juvia would have a breakdown about something embarrassing she did, and rolling around on the floor without pillows is dumb. She thought.

"If only her father could understand," Juvia sighed. "Well, I won't push my luck." She picked up all her pillows and threw them in her oversized closet. Then, she organized all the mascara, nail polish, lipstick, lip gloss, eyeliner, and so on. Then she colored in her sketches neatly and hung them up on her walls. She decided she'd find one that she particularly liked and put it in a frame after her parents were gone. She got a call from lyon. "Hello?"

"Juvia, Gajeel says you beat him up."

"She did," Juvia replied.

"Why?"

"She wanted to."

"Well, that aside, you know when your parents arrive?"

"Nope."

"Well, they'll probably expect a meal...actually, your _father _might expect a welcome home meal. Gajeel says your stake was great. So why don't you text your mom and ask her for the time?"

"Juvia will. Thank you, Lyon."

"Glad to help."

Juvia texted her mother and got a reply almost instantly. _Sweetie, we'll be here on Monday about four thirty. Your father says he expects a meal ready for him, since he doesn't like the food on planes. He says first-class is as dumb as regular class planes. See you soon! :)_

Juvia texted back: _Mom, thanks for the advice. _Then she shut down her phone and put it on her speaker/charger for it to charge. She laid down on her perfectly made bed.

She decided something: that was no time to lay around. She needed some fresh air! She should just go take a walk around her streets. Maybe she would get some new ideas to appease her father; so he wouldn't hate her as much.

Then she bumped into someone. "Sorry," they both said at the same time.

Juvia's eyes widened.

It was Gray. (Gray Fullbuster, just in case you were wondering.)

"Juvia?" he looked confused. "What are you doing here?"

Juvia folded her arms. "Oh I'm sorry, I didn't realize the world was your playground."

Gray scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry, I guess?"

Juvia sighed. "Juvia is sorry. She is just tired because her-"

"-parents are coming tomorrow, yeah, Natsu said."

Juvia shifted her feet uncomfortably. "Um..."

"Yeah..." Gray decided to make his first move. "Uh, so, you wanna go get some ice cream?"

Juvia was surprised, but she hid it and nodded. "Alright!"

~gajeel's pov~

Gajeel was just sitting around, still hungry for more food. He didn't really like how easily Juvia could see through him, but sometimes that was helpful. For the time being, he slowly got up and went onto the internet. Hey, he hated the computer, but for Lev-

what now?

No, no, no...he _wasn't _in love with Levy...right? So why did he feel relieved when Juvia didn't tell Levy he didn't like her?

_Should I confide in Juvia? She can keep my secret, but she'd tease me...but that's our thing, right? Should I stalk Levy or...ugh! Fuck this shit!_

Gajeel slowly went to the school website and typed in: Levy McGarden, sophomore. He saw her profile pop up, with information her parents posted.

Name: Levy McGarden

Age:17

Hobby: reading

Dislikes: violence

Well, that'd be hard. Gajeel lived for violence. He was not a well-behaved person. He beat up whoever pissed him off. Should he get Juvia to ask Levy questions? He was so confused, he wanted to just fall out of love. He barely knew the girl; how could he love her already?

_This must be a dumb high school crush. Yes, a meaningless crush on a little shrimp._

Once he convinced himself of that, he laid back on his bed and went through his phone. He read a new text from Juvia: _Gajeel, are you feeling better?_

He texted back, _no thanks to you._

She replied, Juvia_ gave Levy-san your number. You can thank her later._

Gajeel felt like his heart was flying, but he pushed that thought out of his head. He turned off his phone and stared at the ceiling, thinking about what could happen.

_Would she call me? But she's probably afraid of me, right? But Juvia isn't...but we've known each other for some time. Levy is just a little girl that I barely know. This is a really lame crush. Maybe I should ask Natsu...wait, the fuck? I ain't getting' help from the salamander. That is wrong, since he is not someone to go to for advice. Will I get over this? _

After some more minutes of thinking, he realized it'd be best to ask Juvia and confess that he _did _like Levy. If he needed to get this out of his head, maybe it'd be better if he let someone know about it.

_This isn't me at all!_ Gajeel punched himself and winced. He still hadn't forgotten the feeling of concrete on his face. He decided laying down for a nap would be best. Then he'd figure all of this out later.

~Gray's pov~

After getting ice cream with Juvia, they talked about lots of random things, after talking about her parents. He felt like he'd made progress with Juvia. He knew that he liked her then.

**Yeah, you _thought _you made progress with her. Well, please leave reviews, until next time.**


	7. Gajeel's First Words

**Hi people. So I try to keep my notes short so you read them, but my sis has been hogging my computer. So I can't update or work on chapters as much as I used to. Also, thanks for reading this note. It's 6am, I'm beat, plz review.**

Juvia checked everything before answering the doorbell. Everything looked neat and she had made them a meal, so she couldn't see any faults. Then she answered the door, pulling it open and stepping aside politely as her father taught her to do for 'people of importance'. Please, this is her house. She didn't need manners.

Her father, looking very important and clean, quickly swept his eyes across the room to see if she had missed a spot in cleaning. Nope. Perfection.

"Juvia darling, can we talk in the living room?" Mrs. Lockser asked. Juvia nodded and they all sat down at the table.

"Juvia, there's a party coming up and my associate would appreciate it if I took you there."

"Then I will go."

"You need to distract his son while we talk about the future of our company."

(^_^)~haven't seen me in a while have ya? Well, I'm putting Sting in the story, but this time he's a _good _guy.

"Then I shall."

"You need to marry him."

"WHAT?" Juvia sprang up quickly. "_What _did you just say?"

"Juvia, you are to marry Sting Eucliffe so that, um, uh, so we can..."

"Mom!" Juvia looked to her mother desprately.

Mrs. Lockser shook her head. "Your father will not budge on this decision."

"Well, it had been decided." Her father stood up and straightened his jacket. "I have been very strict to you all your life, Juvia, for a reason. I have raised you to be a trophy wife. You will meet Mr. Sting Eucliffe very soon, and I expect you to be on your best behavior." He walked out the front door, briefcase in hand.

"Mom!" Juvia whined. Mrs. Lockser shook her head. "I've argued with your father, but he says it's good for the company. Personally I think he just doesn't want to see you, but if I argue-"

"Mom, you and dad are part of the few, few, _few _marriages where the wife isn't in charge. Don't you think it's time to change that?"

Mrs. Lockser sighed. "Well, I certainly don't see a way. I hope all this ends well, dear."

_Me too, _thought Juvia.

~Gajeel's pov~

_Juvie's not at school? _Gajeel didn't see Juvia. He did see something else, and he liked what he saw. He took a deep breath, stalked over to levy, and said something he regret very soon.

"Yo, shrimp, ya seen Juvie?"

_Well, I've fucked that up. I called her a shrimp, wasn't polite, and used Juvie's nickname...my mind is having thoughts. That isn't good._

Levy smiled at him. "No, she's staying home today." Gajeel nodded gruffly and sat down at his seat. _I'm still screwed._

Class was boring, as usual, so he just dozed off. Like usual. But without Juvia there to wake up Gajeel when class ended, he slept through his first four periods. It was a long time before he was acknowledged. Somebody shook his shoulder.

"Gajeel!" The red-eyed boy opened his eyes and saw Ryos. "You up?"

"What?" Gajeel barked.

"Uh, aren't you supposed to be at lunch right now? It's 2 o'clock."

Gajeel looked at the clock. "Fuck that shit. I need a nap." He closed his eyes again. Ryos just sighed and sat down somewhere else, and Gajeel did not budge until it was time for dismissal.

(^_^)~ppl dont even read my author notes and dont review. im doubting my life. bye.


	8. Marriage Arrangements

**Leave ideas for my next chapter in the reviews plz thank u. otherwise my chapters will be boring.**

Juvia squirmed in her too-tight dress. It was some sort of silver sparkly ball gown, with matching heels. She'd secretly switched them to gray sneakers. Hopefully the sparkles from her dress would blind anyone with enough spare time to look at her feet.

She followed her mother, her father being too busy for her. As usual. She met Mrs. Eucliffe, who seemed like a nice woman. She'd planned the whole party, and she was excited to meet Juvia.

"She's a wonderful girl," she told Mrs. Lockser. Juvia wanted to puke. So she would end up being Juvia Eucliffe? That sounded as dumb as it was.

"Now, dear, go and meet my son. You'll love him." Mrs. Eucliffe ushered her off.

She met Sting, who was, well, cocky. Self-absorbed, vain, and the opposite of what she liked in a guy.

Juvia smacked her forehead. "I am not looking forward to marrying you."

"Me neither!" Sting looked surprised. "My dad set me up to it."

"So did mine!" Juvia smiled. "Juvia is happy you see things her way. Now, how to get out of this?"

Sting shrugged. "Don't really see a way to avoid marriage."

Juvia groaned. "Don't you have somebody you like?"

"Well, yeah..." Sting looked uncomfortable.

"Then we must get out of this situation!" Juvia exclaimed.

"Yeah, we don't know how," Sting countered. "Our dads are never going to budge. They don't want kids around bothering them-"

"Then why'd they get a nagging wife?" asked Juvia.

Sting chuckled. "Anyways, I think that our parents probably won't accept our not being together. No matter how much we don't like each other."

Juvia folded her arms. "What?"

Sting sat down. "Well, do you have somebody _you're _interested in?"

Juvia nodded. "Everybody does. Juvia thinks. Not sure. Probably. Maybe."

Sting ran his fingers through his hair. "I _really _am not looking forward to living with you."

Juvia shook her head. "Same. Do you go to Sabertooth High?"

Sting nodded. "It's a good school."

"I know." Juvia sat down too, and they chatted for the rest of the party. Their parents thought they were getting along great. They weren't.

~Gajeel's pov~

_It's been three days._ Gajeel still didn't see Juvia. She never missed school. Was this a new thing? Gajeel sighed. _My little girl is growing up so fast. She's a rebel now._

The dismissal bell rang. Gajeel left quickly and walked with the other guys.

"Where's Juvie been?" he asked. Lyon shrugged. Natsu knew, of course, from Lucy.

"Lucy said Juvia was at some business party." Natsu smiled, happy that he had the answer. _Salamander's really dumb._

"What party?" asked Gray. Natsu texted Lucy again. "She's..._getting engaged to somebody?"_

"WHAT?" they all said in unison. They crowded around the phone to see if Natsu was serious. "No way!"

"She's probably being forced to by her dad," said Lyon. "Not much of a surprise he'd do that, but we need to get her out of that situation."

_Duh, _thought Gajeel. Out loud, he said, "obviously we need to know the situation first. What's the reason, who he is."

"Sounds so intelligent," Lyon commented. "This wouldn't be what Juvia told me about, is it?"

"Depends on what she told you," Gajeel retorted. He was having second thoughts about confiding in Juvia. Then again, he didn't really mind Lyon knowing. He wasn't the kind to blab it to everybody they saw and scream it to the world. Unlike Salamander and Jellal.

Jellal was on his phone as they turned the corner. "Well, Erza says that the guy's name is Sting Eucliffe from Sabertooth High. Blond, blue eyes, and very popular with the ladies."

"Then he's not Juvia's type," Lyon concluded.

"So, what I'm hearing is...you have Erza's number?" asked Natsu. Jellal quickly put his phone away. "Maybe."

Gray's phone buzzed and he saw a text from his sister. "Crap, Ultear needs help with...girl stuff. See you guys tomorrow." Gray waved and ran off.

~Levy's pov~

_Juvia sounds bored, _thought Levy as she read the text Juvia had sent her. _Met my future husband. He's got the IQ of a brick._

Levy sighed. She was curled up on her bedroom floor, hugging a pillow as she read the text. _Is she okay?_

She received a call from Lucy. "Hello?"

"Levy-chan!" Lucy squealed. "Natsu called me! He asked me about Juvia's engagement-"

"He has your number?" asked Levy.

"Maybe," Lucy sounded shy. "I think he might like me."

"Of course he does, Lu-chan! You're smart and pretty. Now did you give him your number or did Erza give it to Jellal and he blabbed it to Natsu?"

"I don't know." Lucy sounded excited. "But he called me! What do you think this means?"

Levy sighed. "I don't know! But he probably likes you, and maybe we could try to make sure."

"Can't you ask Gajeel?" Lucy sounded exasperated.

"Wh-what?" Levy blushed. "I don't have his number!"

"Didn't you talk to him at school?" Lucy asked.

"Yes, but I don't think he likes me! He sounded so gruff, during the project. He's nice and all but still!"

"Well, guess Erza and Juvia are the only ones who talk to boys," Lucy sighed. "I feel pathetic. Can't even talk normally to my crush."

"Ditto." Then Levy and Lucy talked about other things..._just boring girl stuff,_ guys would call it. _Weird girl conversations. You know girls, so squealy and weird._

~Juvia's pov~

Juvia met Mr. Eucliffe. He seemed nice, at least nicer than Mr. Lockser. He asked Juvia about Sting, scolded his son and asked if Juvia was comfortable. Juvia answered without honesty, of course.

"So, Juvia, what do you think of Sting?"

_Obnoxious, cocky, rude, dumb..._ "He's very kind and handsome, sir."

"Juvia, do you think Sting would be a good husband?"

_We'll be jumping out of this weird marriage anyway, so..._ "He will be a very attentive husband."

"How many children do you plan on having?"

_None, obviously. _"Um...one?"

"So when do you want to get married?" Juvia glanced at Sting, who held up five fingers.

"Five...years?" Mr. Eucliffe looked shocked, and Sting smacked his forehead.

"Um, five _days!_ Yes, we'll be married in five days."

Mr. Eucliffe looked pleased. "Okay, five days it is. Set up the wedding!" He called to the servants. "We'll need a magical night for these two. If you know what I mean," he winked at his son, who shuddered. Juvia wanted to scream. She'd be scarred for life now.


	9. Picking Her Up

**I try to keep 9,000 words 4 chapter 9, so this chapter will be short. It's all good, the next one will be like probably rly long. How do u pronounce eucliffe?**

The bell rang for school to be dismissed. Juvia got her things ready, and left the classroom. She walked with Gajeel.

"Who's the guy?" he asked.

"Sting Eucliffe. Cocky guy. His father loves me. I hate my life," Juvia got it all rushed out in one breath.

"You okay?" Gajeel showed no emotion. It was rare for him to show emotion on his face anyway.

"Old lady at the party told me to talk 'normally', whatever that means." Juvia walked down the stairs. "Cranky."

Suddenly, as they neared the entrance, they heard a lot of swooning. They rushed out to see the commotion, and Juvia's heart dropped to her feet. It was Sting.

"That's him," she muttered. Gajeel raised an eyebrow. He was winking and flirting with random girls, who all sighed happily. Sting spotted Juvia and his smile wavered. He kept it together and knelt on one knee in front of her. "My angel," he kissed her hand. Juvia pulled it away. Gajeel grabbed the collar of his shirt and raised him off the ground. "Who are you?"

"I'm Sting Eucliffe," the guy smirked. "And I will have you arrested if you don't put me down." He glanced back at a shadowy figure who was watching him. Juvia figured his father sent somebody to make sure Sting was all lovey-dovey to Juvia. She wanted to hurl.

Gajeel also noticed the man and let go of him. "I'm leaving," he barked. He ruffled Juvia's hair and stalked off.

"Your father is going to such great lengths," she hissed.

Sting nodded. "That's him, watching us."

**I don't have much idea of what's happening next, so bye.**


	10. What's Going On?

**people, start reading the all the authors notes from now on, ok? Sometimes I put important info in them. **

Juvia was on the phone with Levy, who had witnessed the whole thing with Sting and Gajeel and everything.

"OMG OMG OMG!" Levy kept squealing. "THAT GUY WAS _SO _HOT!"

"Yes, alright, he's hot," Juvia sighed.

"I know, but...OMG OMG OMG HE'S GORGY-MCGORGE!"

"Okay, okay. Are you done?" asked Juvia.

"Almost. OH MY GOD HE WAS SO HANDSOME!"

"Shall I tell monsieur Gajeel?" Juvia said with a French accent.

"Aucum," Levy said.

"Levy, _aucun _is 'no'. You said it wrong."

"I'm gonna fail French!" Levy wailed.

"I agree," said Juvia.

"Can't you just _try _to be sympathetic?" Levy groaned.

"Nope. I'm getting married in four days, and I don't know how to escape it."

"You know, there's always a way out," Levy said.

"I know! I'm using that to get out of this, but how?"

Levy sighed. "Juvia, Juvia, Juvia. There's always a back door, don't you know?"

"What back door?" Juvia asked, curious.

"Like with Sleeping Beau-"

"_Do not _make a fairy tale reference," Juvia warned.

"I have to!"

"Fine. Tell me how."

"Well, Maleficent cast a spell on princess Briar Rose(people, her name was _Briar Rose!_ Aurora was the name her fairy godmothers gave her to hide her identity!) to sleep forever, right? But then Prince Char-"

"There's no such thing as Prince Charming!" Juvia yelled. She wasn't aware that somebody else that came down the chimney(for the first time) was listening,

"Fine, fine! The prince kissed her and woke up. But that was the back door! The way to avoid sleeping was to _not _prick her finger on a spinning wheel on her sixteenth birthday, but she did. Her fairy godmothers failed at their job, but the prince came and saved the day. Same with Snow-"

"I get it!" Juvia stopped her. "But that wasn't the real story. While Briar was asleep, she was, um, she, uh, a king came and had, like, kids with her. The process happened in her sleep."

Levy gagged.

"Then she woke up to the nudging of her twins."

"Close enough! Now, the obvious path would be to make your dad or Sting's dad to change their minds. But that won't happen, obviously. So, with the back door..."

"Who knows? Maybe a guy would have ideas," said a voice from behind Juvia. Juvia turned around and saw Gray. "Ah! Gotta go bye." Juvia hung up.

"Why didn't you tell me you were getting married?" he asked softly.

"Um, I didn't...have to?" Juvia squeaked. "Plus I'm sure Natsu told you."

"I wanted to hear it in person." Gray made himself comfortable on Juvia's bed. "So, a back door, huh?"

"Why did you eavesdrop?" Juvia asked.

Gray shrugged. "Just wanted to see if you wanted a wedding gift."

Juvia almost popped his head off. "I am not getting married to that shitfalcon of a human being," she seethed.

Gray looked taken back. "Alright, alright, geez. So, you wanted to get out of this?"

Juvia nodded. "But how is the question."

Gray rolled over. "Wow, your bed is _really _comfortable," he said, his voice muffled by the mattress.

Juvia rolled her eyes. "Well, have any ideas that are good?"

Gray rolled over again. "Have you asked Sting's dad?"

Juvia shook her head. "He approves of this too. He signed a contract."

Gray looked surprised. "Contract? Marriages don't need contracts-"

"I know," Juvia interrupted. "My father wrote that I'd move in with Sting and never see him again. They read each other's rules and signed it."

"Where is it kept?" Gray asked.

"In my dad's briefcase." Juvia felt like her face was just slapped. "He's leaving _today!_ Holy mother of Gandalf, that is terrible news. He'll take the case with him to Europe, then China, then to god knows where! Oh, my life in in fucking jeopardy right no-"

Gray grabbed her wrist. "Where's your dad now?"

"In his roo...fuck, fuckity fuck fuck, get under my friggin' bed this instant!" Juvia shoved him under her bed. "Well, he hasn't come yet, so we're good," she whispered. "I'm going to find the contract and see if he wrote anything that can be used against him. I'll get mom to help."

Gray stuck a thumbs up from under her bed and slid his hand out. Juvia smiled to herself and ran off to get help. "Mom!"

~Gray's pov~

_Juvia curses a lot when she's worried, _he thought. Then he noticed the bed's underneath was very clean. He felt around and actually found a small lamp, along with a box. He lit the lamp and opened the shoebox and found a glittery book that said _DIARY OF __ and _Joovea Lockser._

He opened to the first page and read:

_Dear Diary,_

_today I turn five. Mom says I need to keep my memurees in a book, so here I am. I went to daddy's room and found a book with fotoegrafs in it. It was him and a guy, full of them. I have never seen that guy before, and the book says that he is 'My beloved brother, Alexander.' I have no clue what that means. I tore them up and threw them into the toilet, the whole thing! Daddy was sad and mad. He yelled at me for the first time, and mommy was mad to. She says those things were important. I dont know. _

Next was an entry written in better handwriting.

_It's been three years. I am now eight, and my name is Juvia Lockser. I was so silly when I was five. Father is drilling me to be the perfect bride, cooking, sewing, cleaning, singing. I go to school now. I have no 'friends', whatever those are. Who needs people to be around? Me is enough. I must return to my singing lessons._

Gray closed the book and turned off the lamp and he heard somebody coming in. He crawled out from under the bed. "Juvia-"

It wasn't Juvia. It was her father.

They both screamed a girly scream, like 'KYAAAAAAAA!' but they stopped eventually.

"What are you doing under my daughter's bed?" Mr. Lockser snarled.

"I'm digging for gold," Gray said sarcastically.

~Juvia's POV~

Mom and I rushed to my room after we heard my dad scream. Nobody else had a girly screech like that. Then I saw dad holding up Gray by the collar. Shit.

"Juvia!" he fumed. "This young man was hiding under your bed, apparently digging for gold. Who is he?"

Gray's look said not to lie, so I told the truth.

"His name is Gray Fullbuster, juvenile male of seventeen. Goes to Fairy Tail High and hangs out with idiots, which masks his intelligence. Lives with Silver and Mika Fullbuster, with his stepsiblings Lyon Vastia and Ultear Milko-" I noticed the looks on their faces. "Oh. You weren't looking for his life story. My bad."

My dad looked even more angry. "Mr. Fullbuster! Juvia! My office, _now!"_

"Please-" Mom started, but dad said, "shaddup you bitch!"

Mom slapped his face and left in tears. Dad showed no signs of remorse. "Office!"

**worked my ass off for this one. Chapter 11 or 12 with be the last.**


	11. We're Starting Over

**]=I don't actually know people's reactions when Juvia says 'I don't', so I skipped to after Juvia's father drove them to the Eucliffe estate to be interrogated by Mr. Lockser and Mr. Eucliffe. Also, this is my last chapter! Be sure to check out my new NaLu story, Best Friends, which should be coming soon. **

Read the friggin' author's note ya bum. Go!

Mr. Lockser paced the room. "Do you know, Juvia, how much this marriage cost me-"

"Uh, I paid for everything," Mr. Eucliffe brought up.

"Not money! My reputation has been ruined! My daughter not only wrote terrible vows, which did not state your love-"

"I don't have any," Juvia interrupted. "This whole thing was set up."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Mr. Eucliffe stood up. "Juvia doesn't like my son?"

"I know, right?" Sting piped up. "I'm so handsome." He high-fived his dad.

Juvia, who was now filled with facts about Sting, sighed. "Sting loves Miner-"

"Shut. Up." He stated.

"Well, I don't care what your problem is, young man, but-"

"Do _not _talk to my son like that!" Mr. Eucliffe said loudly.

"What matters is that _nobody _interrupts me. Now, Juvia is the problem! She is not married to your son, blondie, which means she still lives in my house!"

Juvia stood up, fists clenched. "The house isn't yours, it's mom's. This isn't the eighteenth century, dad. Also, you have like, _twenty _vacation homes all over the world anyway. It's not like you came back for fun! You came back to send me away."

"Wow, your family is _messed up,_" Sting said. "Your family issues can be discussed later-"

"Fuck off," Juvia snapped. She turned back to her father. "And _you, _you pathetic excuse of a father, how _could _you. Not even loving your own daughter! Did you ever stop to think that if you hadn't been playing around with mom, you could actually be happy? Your little contract stated you never wanted to see me again. Well, guess what pops, that's not happening. Your stupid life-"

"ENOUGH!" Mr. Eucliffe roared, and everybody shut up.

"What I'm hearing is that Juvia and my son despise each other."

Sting and Juvia nodded.

"And Juvia, you never wanted to marry Sting?"

Juvia nodded.

"So your father lied to me, and I almost ruined two young teenager's lives."

"My daughter is seventeen; she is hardly young," Mr. Lockser scoffed.

"Well, _thirty-five_ years of idiocy must have gotten to you, right chief?" Juvia gave a fake salute. "And _do not _call me your daughter. Who'd want to be related to something like _you?_"

"You tell 'im, Juvia!" Sting cheered.

"Shut up, all of you. So Juvia and Sting will _not _be married. Also, Lockser, your daughter needs a better home. Your stupidity is horrendous."

"Okay people," Sting stood up. "It's clear what needs to be done. Juvia's mom should divorce with the old-timer, and Juvia and me will never see each other again. Simple as that."

~Time Skip: Juvia's POV~

Mom divorced with dad, and she got a job at a nice cafe, but it was the size of a restaurant. She got a nice pay each week and she also got to bring home sweets, like cakes and donuts and cookies and candy. Mr. Lockser was out of their faces forever, which was good. Juvia's midlife crisis was over. Until she went to school the next day and remembered about her friends.

"What happened?"

"Where's the guy?"

"Your dad was divorced?"

"Did the bastard fuck off?"

Juvia went back to her normal life, and after what she'd been through, she decided to be a bit more gutsy.

~Next day~

_RING!_

It was time for second period. As the classroom emptied out, Juvia took a deep breath and approached Gray. He noticed her coming and waited for her by the door.

"What's up?" Gray asked her as they walked to the next class together.

"Um...do you want to, um, come over to my house after school today?" She blurted. She squeezed her eyes shut as she waited for his answer.

To her surprise, he laughed. It was music to her ears. "Of course, why not." She peeked up at him and he smiled down at her. "Let's put that jacuzzi room to use." He ruffled her hair and picked up his pace, leaving her there, baffled. Then, after she came to her senses, she blushed furiously.

**I wasn't sure 'bout that scene...hair-ruffling is kinda Gajeel's gig, you know? And a jacuzzi room is like hot tubs...which means Gray would be half-naked. _This _Juvia, with dignity and manners, will probably blush. I hope you enjoyed the story, 'cuz it's over.**


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